ZUF demands white paper on district boundaries
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, December 11 2016:
The Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) has questioned the declaration of seven new districts including Kangpokpi and Noney (Longmai) by the State Government without consulting the stakeholders.
ZUF in a statement issued by its information and publicity secretary A Longmei said this ploy of the Government is nothing less than putting of old wine in the new bottle to fool the people.
The concern of Zeliangrong people in particular and the Nagas in general is not the name of districts but rather the division of their ancestral land, it said.
The Government of Manipur must produce a white paper on the boundary of Noney, Jiribam and Kangpokpi districts at the earliest, ZUF demanded.
If the boundary of the newly created districts of Kangpokpi and Jiribam infringe upon the ancestral lands of the Zeliangrong and other indigenous people, the Chief Minister and his Cabinet who took the decisions would have to face the consequences, the ZUF warned.
"The Government of Manipur claims that the creation of new districts is for the sake of administrative convenience but the people clearly understand that such hasty decision was taken to take political mileage on the eve of Assembly Election.
Unless the Government produces a white paper on the boundary demarcations of these new districts, the Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) will take all necessary initiatives to stop the operation of Congress Party and its agents in all the Zeliangrong inhabited areas", the ZUF statement said.
The interest of the Zeliangrong people cannot be taken for granted by such act of the Cong led State Govt, it said adding that they will fight hard to save their land.
"The Zeliangrong people will never surrender even an inch of their land.
In this crucial juncture, the ZUF appeals to all the Zeliangrong to be vigilant and remain alert against any element which may pose a threat to our land.
Our land is the most precious gift that we have inherited from our ancestors and the ZUF will defend it at all cost for the sake of our posterity," it said.